ONE MORE THEORY ABOUT HAPPINESS: A MEMOIR By: Paul Guest June 17, 2010

This is a book to take ones breath away due to the frankness of the author, the fact that you,the reader, is not in his shoes, and the multiple examples the author gives of stupid reactions to his situation of which we each could very easily be guilty.

At the age of twelve, Paul took a rusty, cobweb covered bicycle from his teachers’ garage, rode it downhill, discovered it had no brakes, and plunged headlong, literally and figuratively, into a dramatic change that became the rest of his life. He relates the emotions that accompanied first knowing he was badly injured, holding out for hope that he would prove the doctors wrong when they said he would never regain use of his arms and legs, watching his parents’ financial and emotional burden, and accepting that he must make the best of the cards he has been dealt.
Paul shares stories with us that are numbing and disturbing, and some are impossible to know how to react to them. A well-meaning uncle, hearing of the accident, visits him in the hospital and brings him a new bicycle, the one he had always wanted, the one he will never ride. He watches as his parents’ are forced to transform their home into a house outfitted for his needs alone. He struggles through puberty, high school, and college as we all do, but with added angst and struggle. He is robbed when, unable to do anything about it, a student takes his wallet from his backpack during an elevator ride. The list of goes on and on as, even though totally dependent on others in many regards, the author is determined to carve his niche and be his own man.
In the sea of memoirs available at the bookstore and library, this rather short, but terribly potent work is the one you want to read.

About Me

Porter Grand is a writer and bibliophile who has worked, among other jobs, as a shampoo girl, carnival barker, waitress, bartender, welfare caseworker, and reference desk librarian. Look for her book LITTLE WOMEN AND WEREWOLVES in your bookstore or local library on and after May 4, 2010.